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A coachload of tourists of any origination is an ugly thing. Stampeding through a pretty village or museum should be outlawed. I can't see any benefit to the destination or tourists in any number above 6.

I think the reason people sign up for tours is that they feel safer in numbers and they rarely speak the local language and want other people to talk to. Tour organizers can get better rates in bulk. The people who have some to decent Spanish tend to travel alone and to spend more time in any one place. Nicaraguans outside Granada tend to be curious about foreigners and helpful unless foreigners behave like jerks, but the tour groups tend to be kept apart from contact with Nicaraguans other than tour employees. I think people often go places to see architecture and nature rather than want to spend time with the people of the places they're visiting, and in area with mass tourism, the tourists are just a job and not people one wants to spend time with (the best hotel keepers do like people in general far more than most of us).

This group in Managua is at your maximum. I should have had fill flash.

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We flew in a three seater plane to Canaima from Southern Venezuela with a pilot who wore an eyepatch over one eye. I didn’t think it boded well, but we did arrive safely.

Our Cessna was a three-seater as well, but somehow four of us managed to cram inside the cabin, probably making the plane overweight. It was a bumpy flight, which didn't bother me much. However, one member of our group was so terrified that she refused to look out the window for the entire trip.

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When people I've photographed ask me to send them photos, I always agree. Have to admit, though, that my record of complying isn't very good.

If I take photos that feature people prominently I usually give them my card and ask them to email me if they would like to see the pics. No-one ever has done. So I wouldn't feel too bad about your compliance record.

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Just to balance out the bad attitude of some "photographers" there is an article in Amateur Photographer were a "decent" British photographer was all lined up to take a photo on a British railway and, when he was just about press the shutter button, another "British" trainspotter pushed in front of the "decent" photographer and stole his image.

Allan

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I recall an early morning when I had set up my rather tall heavy stepladder with stabilisers overlooking Castlerigg stone circle. The light was pretty good but I still took my time up there. When I clambered down there was a line of four or five visitors waiting their turn. I must have been in an uncharacteristic willing mood because I did let them have a go. None of them looked very professional and didn't have seriously wide-angle lenses so I didn't feel they were going to be competition. They must have asked nicely! I dare say I could have collected some fees, missed a trick there

Edited July 29 by Robert M Estall

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Hippos have that reputation and so do the buffalo. It was a buffalo who nearly killed Beverly Joubert -- a sort of sneak attack it seems. The Jouberts live with the wild creatures and certainly know how to behave. I was very relieved to never see a snake in Africa. They always seemed the scariest of all.

Paulette

Interesting. Bison are the most dangerous animal in Yellowstone. It might have something to do with some people treating them like big cows and getting too close.

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You are right. Two recent attacks, one of a girl child thrown high in the air. She was running away, but not fast enough. Both survived, luckily.

For what ever reason Bison seem cause a lot of injuries but not deaths in Yellowstone. Here are the most likely causes of death.

Fatalities

Since Yellowstone was established in 1872, eight people have been killed by bears in the park. More people in the park have died from drowning (121 incidents), burns (after falling into hot springs, 21 incidents), and suicide (26 incidents) than have been killed by bears. To put it in perspective, the probability of being killed by a bear in the park (8 incidents) is only slightly higher than the probability of being killed by a falling tree (7 incidents), in an avalanche (6 incidents), or being struck and killed by lightning (5 incidents).

Yosemite is a park I have spent a lot of time in. Here is a interesting fact. More injuries in Yosemite are inflicted by deer, with one documented death, than those caused by black bear or any other park animal. People worry about bears and mountain Lions but not the deer. Could be down to Disney and Bambi.

Edited August 5 by Shergarupdate

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Yosemite is a park I have spent a lot of time in. Here is a interesting fact. More injuries in Yosemite are inflicted by deer, with one documented death, than those caused by black bear or any other park animal. People worry about bears and mountain Lions but not the deer. Could be down to Disney and Bambi.

Most tourists are absolute idiots about deer, and will feed them if the deer approach them. Saw a lot of that in the Shenandoah National Park along Skyline Drive. The Yellowstone deer will be mule deer, a bit larger than the eastern Whitetailed Deer.

Talked to a ranger in the Grayson Highland Mount Rogers National Recreation Area who told me about one guy letting his dog off leash there despite regulations on that. Dog went for a deer. Deer kicked and broke the dog''s leg.

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You could probably change that to most tourists are absolute idiots about any animal. I live close to a safari park and visit often. One of the keepers was telling us about the time they had a family pull over and start setting up a picnic on the resting platform in one of the lion enclosures - the pride had gone into full stalk mode and the keepers had been really worried they would have to harm the animals to protect the idiots unable to read multi-language signs or even the non-language picture warnings

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Sounds like the couple who were angry that they weren't allowed to leave the vehicle in Churchill because they "came all the way from Germany to pet the polar bears." Our photographer guide said that Europeans have been without their major predators for a very long time and sometimes they truly don't understand. I must say the polar bears look more friendly than grizzlies but they are the ones who are used to eating creatures about our size.

Paulette

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Sounds like the couple who were angry that they weren't allowed to leave the vehicle in Churchill because they "came all the way from Germany to pet the polar bears." Our photographer guide said that Europeans have been without their major predators for a very long time and sometimes they truly don't understand. I must say the polar bears look more friendly than grizzlies but they are the ones who are used to eating creatures about our size.

Paulette

I believe (but don't quote me) it was visitors from the US that wished to picnic with the lions - but then I believe (please correct me if I am wrong) that in some states it is much easier to get licences for more dangerous animals as pets. To be honest, I don't think the country of origin or even being a tourist has a huge amount to do with it - some people are just idiots around animals. There are cases in the UK of cows trampling people - and while in some cases responsibility can be laid with the farmer in others it is people ignoring warnings because they want to pet them or see the calves or there is a pretty flower or something.

I think some people watch too many cartoons and films and develop a badly wrong image of what animals are and what they will do.

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Oops ... Better stop mentioning nationalities. My apologies to Germany. I guess having our very own bears and cougars and alligators, etc. in the great US of A doesn't make us any smarter about predators.

There have been a couple near me - which have been an ongoing fight between a farmer fed up of people ignoring his signs to avoid cattle in fields without public footpaths and him putting cattle in footpath fields due to signs being ignored. It is 6 of one and half dozen of the other but unfortunately, the people hurt/killed were innocent of the argument.

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Oops ... Better stop mentioning nationalities. My apologies to Germany. I guess having our very own bears and cougars and alligators, etc. in the great US of A doesn't make us any smarter about predators.

Paulette

Well, the people involved were quoted as mentioning their own nationality themselves, so that's probably fair enough. It's not a generalisation. You couldn't be unfair to anyone anyway.

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You are right. Two recent attacks, one of a girl child thrown high in the air. She was running away, but not fast enough. Both survived, luckily.

Both bison and elk can be problematic if their personal space is not respected.

Last summer the Yellowstone elk made the news with some close encounters.

The recent Yellowstone bison episode with the child was telling. The girl and her family were from US and part of a group of 50 or so who lingered within 5-10 ft of the bison for over 20 minutes. I guess he grew weary of the attention and decided to exit the scene. The little girl went airborne but luckily sustained no apparent serious injuries This all occurred either in ignorance or disregard and with no excuse of language barrier of the widely publicized information on how far to stay away from Yellowstone's critters.

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Both bison and elk can be problematic if their personal space is not respected.

Last summer the Yellowstone elk made the news with some close encounters.

The recent Yellowstone bison episode with the child was telling. The girl and her family were from US and part of a group of 50 or so who lingered within 5-10 ft of the bison for over 20 minutes. I guess he grew weary of the attention and decided to exit the scene. The little girl went airborne but luckily sustained no apparent serious injuries This all occurred either in ignorance or disregard and with no excuse of language barrier of the widely publicized information on how far to stay away from Yellowstone's critters.

There's a similar video of a guy getting kicked in the groin after he decided to pet a feral Banker pony with its ears back. The people I saw feeding deer had been approached by the deer. I saw (and photographed, but not good enough for here), a six point white-tailed buck come into a parking area to see if humans would feed him. Lots of signs saying not to feed the wild animals. It's "but the deer are actually tame" thinking.